Karachi Energy fixed their date with Quetta Zorawar in the final when they defeated defending champions Islamabad United 4-2 on penalties in the second semifinal of the Super Football League held in Karachi at the Peoples Sports Complex on Wednesday night.
At the end of the scheduled and then extra time the match was evenly poised at 1-1. Captain Muhammad Essa provided lead to Karachi Energy in the 91st minute on a penalty-kick before Muhammad Ramzan brought an equaliser seconds before close also on penalty.
However, in the heart wrenching penalties session, Karachi, the runners-up of the previous edition, kept their cool, scoring four goals while conceding just two.
For Karachi, Muhammad Essa, Muhammad Rasool, Abdul Aziz and Aurangzeb Senior converted their penalties while Saddam Hussain’s kick collided with the post. For Islamabad United Muhammad Ramzan and Hikmatullah netted goals while Yasir Afridi’s third penalty was saved by goalkeeper Muhammad Umar. Kamran Khan was the other who missed the second penalty that he took.
Earlier, Karachi had to face a tough time in front of Islamabad for the first time in the tournament. The thick crowd was greatly entertained by breathtaking rallies from either side.
“It was a tough but nice game as both sides played in attacking manner but in the end we were able to seal the fate of the tie in our favour. Now, we are looking towards the final and I am hopeful that we will be able to win it,” Karachi Energy captain Muhammad Essa told ‘The News’.
Islamabad United head coach Sajjad Mehmood is satisfied with the way his team played in the semifinal. “I am very much satisfied with the way my team played in the semifinal. It was the best performance which the team produced for the first time in the competitions,” Sajjad said.

Earlier in another Semi final, Striker Kaleemullah struck twice to put Quetta Zorawar in the final when they edged past Lahore Lajpaals 2-1 in the first semifinal of the Super Football League held here at the Peoples Sports Complex on Tuesday night.

Islamabad United were lucky to advance into the semifinals when Quetta Zorawar held Tribe FC Peshawar to a 1-1 draw in their last league encounter of the Super Football League held in Karachi at the Peoples Sports Complex on Friday night.
Tribe FC Peshawar, needing a win to reach last-four, were eliminated as they finished with six points, just one point behind Islamabad United.

So Now we have 4 confirmed Semifinalists.

Quetta Zorawar  v/s Lahore Lajpaals .  27th July. 10:00 pm

Karachi Energy v/s Islamabad United  . 28th July , 10:00 pm

Lahore Lajpaals joined Karachi Energy and Quetta Zorawar in the semifinals when they defeated defending champions Islamabad United 2-0 in a vital match of the Super Football league held in Karachi at the Peoples Sports Complex on Sunday.
Earlier, in the other tie held on Saturday night, Tribe FC Peshawar held Karachi Energy to a 1-1 draw to keep their semifinals hopes alive.
In blistering heat, the match between Lahore Lajpaals and Islamabad United remained composed in the first half with no team creating any positive move. But after the breather, Lahore Lajpaals played in a positive mood and got onto the score sheet through an excellent strike from Asif Mehmood in the 65th minute.
In the 71st minute Islamabad United could have brought the equaliser but Lahore’s gloveman Bilal Rafique made a good save. In the 80th minute, Asim Mansoor doubled the lead for Lajpaals when he guided a fine cross from Asif Mehmood.
Four minutes later, Lajpaals’ defender Ali Ihsan did a splendid job in the danger area to save his side from a blow.
With the victory, Lahore Lajpaals stretched their points to 11 from seven matches and are placed third behind leaders Karachi Energy and Quetta Zorawar.
On the other hand, Lahore result landed Islamabad in trouble as they finished their campaign with seven points and their fate will be decided after the result of the match between Tribe FC Peshawar and Quetta Zorawar later this week.
Tribe FC Peshawar, trailing last with five points, need a win against Quetta to make it for the semifinals.
“The team played well and now our whole focus is on the semifinal.” Lahore’s coach Shehzad Anwar said.
Meanwhile, in the other encounter held between Karachi Energy held Tribe FC Peshawar in a 1-1 draw. Both the goals were scored in the first half. International midfielder Adeel Ahmed provided Peshawar the lead in the sixth minute. However, in the 14th minute, Muhammad Essa’s through pass fell to Shakir Lashari who ran over the thick defence and ultimately made it home safely to bring the parity which lasted till close of the game.
With the draw, Karachi moved their points to 14 and are still acting as leaders while by virtue of single point Tribe FC Peshawar stretched their points to five from seven matches.

Quetta Zorawar became the second team after Karachi Energy to make it to the semifinals when they held defending champions Islamabad United to a goalless draw in their Super Football League match held in Karachi, at the Peoples Sports Complex on Friday night.
With the draw, Quetta Zorawar stretched their points to 11 from seven matches. However, as a result, the fate of Islamabad United is still uncertain as they moved their points to seven from seven matches.
Tribe FC Peshawar were scheduled to lock horns with Karachi Energy on Saturday night in a vital match which will more probably make the positions clear.
Peshawar have four points from six matches while Lahore Lajpaals are currently placed third with eight points from six meetings.
In the first half, Quetta Zorawar had a tight control on the ball. After the breather, Islamabad United, needing at least a draw to keep their semifinals hopes alive, played with great discipline and created good moves but to no avail.
“In the first half, we did not play well. But we made a good recovery in the second. We are still uncertain about our qualification, which will be clear by tomorrow,” Islamabad United coach Sajjad Mehmood said.

Defender Haji Muhammad struck one penalty in the first half to provide Lahore Lajpaals a 1-0 win over Tribe FC Peshawar on Sunday while Karachi Energy became the first team to confirm their semifinals berth after defeating defending champions Islamabad United 2-1 in matches of the Super Football League being in operation here at the Peoples Sports Complex.
The loss pushed Peshawar to the brink of elimination with four points from six matches. In an other match on Saturday night, Karachi Energy outgunned Islamabad United 2-1 to qualify for the semifinals.
Striker Muhammad Qasim put Islamabad 1-0 ahead in the 41st minute. But three minutes later, Zafar Majeed landed an equaliser for Karachi Energy. Karachi struck their second goal through Muhammad Rasool in the 79th minute to take their points to 13 from six matches. Islamabad United are struggling at six points from six meetings. Quetta Zorwar are second with ten points from six matches.

After a couple of narrow defeats, one of the hot favourites Quetta Zorawar were able to pull off their third victory on Sunday when they defeated leaders Karachi Energy 2-1.
Muhammad Rasool was able to provide lead to the last edition’s runners-up in the 27th minute. However, their jubilation had not yet subsided when young forward Kaleemullah head one splendidly into the net following a free-kick to help Quetta Zorawar bounce back in the game with 1-1 on the board.
Nine minutes before full time, Imran Hashmi struck the winner for Quetta Zorawar with a beautiful individual effort when his push went into the net after deflecting off the right post.
“Two back-to-back defeats had let us down and this win was a pleasant one for us as it would help our players get back on their feet. Overall it was a good match as both sides created few open chances but in the end we took the lead which was vital,” Quetta Zorawar coach Akhtar Mohiuddin told ‘The News’.
The victory placed Quetta Zorawar at the second spot with nine points from five matches just behind Karachi Energy who have ten points after five appearances.
Meanwhile, Tribe FC Peshawar kept their semifinals hopes alive when they beat Islamabad United by 1-0 in the match held on Saturday night.
In the 90th minute, Peshawar’s captain Imran Niazi scored past goalkeeper Asim Khursheed to gift his side with three crucial points.
With the victory, Tribe FC Peshawar took their points to four from five matches while Islamabad have six points from five meetings. Lahore Lajpaals are struggling with four points from four outings.